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Goodbye, Wild Weasel — Chapter 1 Part 3


The house had two floors: a ground floor and a loft, with a combined area of less than 200 square feet. The lower level could accommodate six people lying down, while the remaining four had to sleep in the loft, which was closest to the ceiling. The coffins rested on wooden racks above, just four feet from those sleeping in the loft.

“Which coffin contains the corpse?” Yu De Ren asked the man.

“The one on the far left,” the man replied before leaving the house.

“We’ll draw lots to decide sleeping arrangements,” Hu Tie Han suggested. “Those who draw a skeleton symbol will sleep in the loft. If you draw two skeleton symbols, you’ll have to sleep directly under the coffin with the corpse. Any objections?”

Of all times, he chose now to come up with this “skeleton lottery” idea.

We exchanged uneasy glances but had no better suggestion. The drawing began, and I prayed not to draw the unlucky lot. Unfortunately, I did.

I ended up sitting below the coffin with the corpse, hugging my knees and crying silently.

“I’ll switch places with you,” Qu Xiao Jue said.

“You’re not scared?” I asked.

“You’re a girl,” he replied as he crawled over to swap spots with me.

“Xiao Jue, thank you.”

“Get some rest. Don’t be afraid. Morning will come soon,” he reassured me.

I lay down beside Xiao Jue, closing my eyes tightly to avoid looking up. None of us could sleep that night.

I had known Xiao Jue since we were nine. He was never the most outstanding person in our group and seemed to lack strong opinions. Hu Tie Han, on the other hand, was tall, handsome, and a natural leader—I had always had a crush on him. But that night, while I faced my fears, Hu Tie Han stayed comfortably on the lower level without offering to trade places with me.

I turned to look at Xiao Jue beside me. He had pulled his clothes over his head and curled up tightly, trembling in his makeshift bedding.

“Xiao Jue, are you very scared?” I gently patted his back. “I can’t sleep. Can we talk?”

He poked his head out, trying to appear calm.

“Why did you switch places with me?” I asked.

“There are other boys besides Hu Tie Han, you know?” Xiao Jue said, looking at me.

It was then I realized I had been overlooking him all along.

Because he liked me, Xiao Jue was willing to trade places even though he was terrified. Lying beneath the coffin with the corpse, he still thought of my comfort before his own. I turned to him, and he met my gaze. I never realized how close we truly were.

Xiao Jue was clever yet headstrong. He seemed like someone who would only discover his life’s purpose much later. He didn’t do well on his college entrance exams and failed to get into university, spending a year adrift. But then, he suddenly turned his life around, achieving three A’s in London’s university entrance exams. He was accepted into Bristol University to study accounting.

His tuition and living expenses amounted to 150,000 yuan annually. His family wasn’t well-off—his retired parents and married sisters couldn’t provide much support except for his third sister, who agreed to cover half the costs. As his girlfriend, I couldn’t bear to see his dreams crushed, so I borrowed the remaining amount from Meng Meng’s mother, repaying it monthly. Xiao Jue would graduate in a year.

We couldn’t afford a plane ticket or expensive international calls, so we communicated mainly through letters. He sent me one every two weeks. Once he graduated and found a job, I hoped to save enough for a ticket to visit him.

That day, Hu Tie Han and Yu De Ren arrived, with Yu De Ren holding two four-foot-tall Sailor Moon figures.

“They’re for you—Sailor Moon! One each, the newest arrivals,” he announced.

“Such childish toys. I’m not interested,” I replied.

Yu De Ren, who didn’t do well on his exams, hadn’t qualified for advanced studies and now worked as a toy buyer for a trading company. His childlike personality and lack of ambition suited the job perfectly.

“Have you started job hunting?” Yu De Ren asked me.

“I’m writing applications,” I said. “What about you, Hu Tie Han? What are your plans?”

“Don’t ask. He’s definitely going to become a cop,” Meng Meng said.

“I’ve already applied to be a police inspector,” Hu Tie Han confirmed.

“Have you ever considered doing something else?” I asked.

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